


These small hours

by Port_in_a_Storm



Series: Roblivion - Find my home [4]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Established Relationship, Families of Choice, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-03
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 22:34:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7380145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Port_in_a_Storm/pseuds/Port_in_a_Storm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This family thing didn't happen to everyone, and Liv is determined to relish hers. Or, the time that Liv decided she'd much rather stay home with Robert and Aaron than do anything else.</p>
            </blockquote>





	These small hours

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again all! This story was based on a prompt by the lovely and talented Wishful86, who said: “Would you consider doing an evening version? Like Liv deciding that she wants to watch TV with Robert and Aaron before bed, instead of hanging out in her room or with Gabby or something” in a comment left on my previous work, 'Bloom'. I hope that this fulfills that wonderful prompt.
> 
> Thank you guys so so much for all of the kudos and incredible comments you've left on my stories. It means so much to me to have such encouragement, and such loving words of praise, so thank you!
> 
> Enjoy :)

Gabby had invited her ‘round to hers, and Liv is tempted to go. Gabby has a big house and a mother who feels she needs to compensate for Gabby’s dad. She lets her do most things that she wants. Most of the time nowadays, though, that just means she lets Gabby and Liv sit in her room all night talking and giggling till the early hours, and Bernice will bring dinner up to them. She starts to reply that she’ll be there in a few hours, when she hears the front door open and close.

Instantly afterwards, she hears Aaron’s footsteps all but running downstairs to greet Robert, who is home from a two day work trip. She puts the phone in her pocket and goes downstairs herself. 

She finds her brother and his boyfriend hugging and swaying in the living room. Aaron is clutching Robert’s blazer like he doesn’t ever want to let go, and Robert has his face buried in the crook of Aaron’s neck. Honestly, if she wasn’t so happy for her brother she swears their relationship would sicken her.

They kiss, and before it can get too passionate she clears her throat. She feels almost bad when they draw back from each other. 

‘Hiya,’ she says. ‘Glad you’re home.’ Before Robert could smile too wide, she adds ‘he’s had a face like a wet weekend the past two days!’ This gets a laugh out of Robert and a glare out of Aaron.

‘It’s good to be home,’ Robert says. He turns a beaming smile on Aaron, who bites his lip. Liv rolls her eyes. Perhaps it’s for the best that Gabby invited her to hers. Aaron has this look in his eyes and he takes Robert by the hand.

‘Put your earphones in for an hour, eh?’ he says to her. Liv wrinkles her nose, but immediately reaches for her phone, sending Gabby a text that says to expect her in an hour.

Luckily she doesn’t hear anything. She _has_ turned her music up really loud though, enough that she probably has done some serious damage to her ears. If she could have gone to Gabby’s earlier, she would have. But Gabby is visiting her Dad for the evening, and Liv doesn’t like to interrupt them.

It’s during the change from one song to the next that she hears footsteps on the stairs. It’s actually two pairs of footsteps on the stairs, and Liv feels it’s safe to take the earphones out now. She hears the oven door close and when her stomach grumbles she realises that she hasn’t eaten since lunchtime, six hours ago. She puts her phone into her pocket again and goes downstairs.

They’re standing in the kitchen talking, and she takes a moment to just immerse herself in the domesticity of it all.

‘I didn’t know what time you were gonna be back or I’d have cooked somethin’,’ Aaron says. He ties a half-empty bag of chips up and places it back in the freezer. 

‘Chips and nuggets are fine,’ Robert objects. ‘Besides, I’d much prefer an hour in bed to an hour of you in front of the stove.’

Aaron shakes his head and Liv rolls her eyes. Her friends don’t believe her when she tells them how stupidly flirtatious her brother and his boyfriend are. She wishes she could record these moments to show them. _See_ , she’d tell them. _Embarrassin’ aren’t they?_ But she’d say it with a fond tone, and anyone who agreed with her would soon get a fist to the face.

‘Anyway,’ Robert is saying. ‘I didn’t expect a househusband.’ He pulls Aaron to him with hands at his waist. 

‘Good,’ Aaron says. ‘’Cause you ain’t gettin’ that, mate.’

‘I’m not your _mate_.’ But they’re both smiling and Liv would let them kiss again except they may well get out of hand again, and she doesn’t think she can bear the thought of leaving them to their nasty ways in the _kitchen_ of all places.

‘Dinner on?’ she asks, and relishes it a little when they jump apart. 

‘Yeah. Aaron’s put chips in the oven ‘cause he’s an amazing boyfriend.’ He’s talking to Aaron even though Liv asked the question and she rolls her eyes again.

‘Rob, you’ve literally just had me in bed. You don’t need to try to win me over.’

‘I’m still here,’ Liv reminds them, but she’s smiling in spite of herself. ‘So what are you two doing tonight? Aside from the obvious.’

Robert grins at her and ruffles her hair. ‘Thought we’d watch some telly,’ he says. He looks at Aaron as if wanting to get his permission. Aaron just smiles and rubs Robert’s arm. ‘I just want to relax tonight.’

‘Whatever you want,’ Aaron assures him.

They sit in front of the TV whilst they wait for the food to cook. Aaron and Robert keep giving each other these glances, but Liv actually doesn’t feel out of place. Because sometimes when Robert looks away from the television, he catches Liv’s eye and smiles at her as well. It really is nice to have him home. She didn’t think she’d miss him this much, and that is nothing to do with Aaron’s moody face when his boyfriend isn’t around. 

Her phone vibrates in her pocket and she looks at it. It’s a message from Gabby: _I’m home. What time you coming over?_

She looks at Aaron and Robert who are laughing at something on the show they’ve put on. She can smell the nuggets and chips in the oven, and she can feel her brother’s warmth against her side. Suddenly, she can’t think of anywhere she’d rather be than right here, with her little family in front of the telly, waiting for their oven dinner.

 _Changed my mind_ , she texts back. _Rob’s home. Gonna spend time with them._

Gabby ‘boos’ her, but it’s accompanied by a smiley face, and Liv chuckles.

‘What’s funny?’ Aaron asks.

‘Hm? Oh, nothin’.’ She puts her phone back in her pocket, completely happy where she is.

**Author's Note:**

> Come have a nosy on tumblr!: [](http://www.portinastorm.tumblr.com)Port in a Storm
> 
> The title is a line from 'Little Wonders' by Rob Thomas


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